Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion First Impressions

This weekend I picked up a copy of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and gave it a try. I loved how in depth and involved Morrowind was (although I never finished it or even got close to finishing it) so I thought this game would be that much and more. One of the big parts of Morrowind that I did not like was the alien environments. It was fairly cool and made you feel like you were in an alien world, but I like more believable environments so Oblivion really looked appealing to me.

So far, I've probably played only about 3 hours (having a 7 month old son I'm surprised I was able to play that much!) and once I got past the strange new console-focused interface, I love the game and the story. It really pulls you in and gives you the feeling that you are in a living and breathing world. So far, I followed the main story line bringing the Amulet of Kings to the monk at Weynon Priory and then went looking for the King's lost son, Martin, who I saved after closing the first gate to Oblivion. So far, it has been a bit difficult in some battles, but after I got the hang of dodging the fireballs and sneaking up so enemies don't see me and nailing them with a well placed arrow for 3 times the damage, I survived quite easily. I am playing a Wood Elf (as I always tend to) thief/ranger hybrid. I have healing spells and will be good with a bow, but you can't trust me or I'll rob you blind (at least that's the way I intend to play).

So far, I've stuck to the main story line, but now that Martin is safe and I'm in the Imperial City, I think I will branch off from the storyline and find my own things to do. Rather than using the fast travel option, I chose to walk/ride my way from Weynon Priory to Kvatch and found a bunch of interesting places along the way that I will definitely go back and check out. I am really excited to dig deeper into this game, but am also worried about the amount of time it's going to steal from me!
Anyway, I highly recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of Role Playing Games and/or the original Morrowind games. Purchase Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion at Amazon.com today.

Also, I highly recommend the Elder Scrolls IV Strategy Guide for this game as the world is literally huge and there will be lots of areas that you will miss without the guide.